Inside Bergen has confirmed this morning that former freeholder candidate Bob Yudin, left, is giving serious consideration to challenging rookie BCRO Chairman Rob Ortiz.

Two BCRO county candidates for office this year have confirmed today that Ortiz has done little if anything to create the necessary infrastructure for the organization to build upon. They are troubled that Ortiz is taking credit for Party building in victories in Rutherford, Hasbrouck Heights and a several of small communities, none of which Ortiz was involved in a significant way, these sources claim.   

They say the BCRO deserves little if any credit for the local victories secured by GOPers at the municipal level.  According to three sources familiar with the Rutherford victory, credit beyond the hard work of the local organization only extends to Thom Amirato, who was not hired by the BCRO and Joe Caruso who virtually begged Ortiz to pay attention to Rutherford.

Others question the Ortiz’s wisdom in recruiting and aiding a write-in challenge to Paul Sarlo in his race for mayor in Wood Ridge, while many other candidates in competitive races received little or no help. The write-in proved to be a major flop.

The relationship between Ortiz and his county candidates became even more bitter when the county ticket had a better than expected showing election night with no help from the BCRO.  As cited by other disgruntled Bergen Republicans was Ortiz’s failure to qualify the District 37 ticket for clean elections funding as if first dismal failure to organize.

Ortiz’s decision to take a job as a lobbyist deeply disappointed others.  Yudin has run for freeholder three times and has forged strong relationships with his fellow GOPers who are looking for someone, like Yudin, from within their own ranks to led the organization. 

“Just like you’d expect from a lawyer or lobbyists,” said one rank-and-file GOPer.  “He takes credit for what others do as his own, but that isn’t going to help us take advantage of this opportunity we have to win. We need a new Chairman.”